


The Forest

by PhageChildon



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies), Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Blood, Death, Good End, Hunting, I'll add more tags as I upload more, M/M, Multiple Endings, Saving, Torture, choose your ending, chose your path, just in time, losing limbs, multiple AUs, wrong end
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-08
Updated: 2018-12-08
Packaged: 2019-09-14 02:41:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,837
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16904565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PhageChildon/pseuds/PhageChildon
Summary: Being kidnapped by Alvin, Hiccup finally has a chance to escape and put a stop to his cabin of torture where others are being held as well. Choosing the AU you want, follow Hiccup as he tries to escape the booby-trapped forest and avoid getting bad ends. As Alvin says, if Hiccup makes it out of the forest, he lives. If Alvin finds him first, he dies. But Alvin isn't playing fair, and Hiccup has help on the way.





	1. The Opening

**Author's Note:**

> Before You Begin:
> 
> After reading The Opening, select “Chapter Index.” The AU’s will be listed by numbers. Select the AU you want to read. When you reach the end where you have to make a choice, click the “Chapter Index” again. The options will be labeled by lowercase letters such as: a. b. c. etc. The idea was for it to somewhat resemble an outline like this:
> 
> The Opening  
> 2\. Mafia AU
> 
> a.  
> b.
> 
> 3\. Super Hero AU
> 
> a.
> 
> b.
> 
> Although there are many endings, there is also a True Ending. This True Ending incorporates all the AU’s. This whole story, even though it’s multiple choice, is a story in itself. Of course, you don’t have to read all of it – if you want you can simply just read the AU’s you like. I started this back in 2015 but it's such a big project I got overwhelmed and stopped. Instead of scrapping it, I decided to finish what I had, even if it doesn't have as many endings as I would've liked. It's just an experimental fanfiction.
> 
> Until I have the others completed, I've uploaded the ending that turned out the best to give you guys a taste of what's to come! By uploading this I'm hoping that'll really give me the drive/motivation to keep writing and doing this instead of leaving it in it's folder for another threeish years orz If you guys have any AU's you want me to include, let me know! So far I have written (not finalized): Butterfly, Super Hero, Epic, Time Traveling, Vampire/Werewolf, Zombie, Demon, Witness Protection (Jack's a cop), and medium/sensitive AUs. I hope to add a punk/nerd AU as well, but we'll see!

The wood creaks and moans as I lay nearly broken on the cold hard ground. It’s dirty, so, so dirty and filled with so many rats you can barely see the cracked and splintered wooden floor. They bite and nip at me, mistaking me for food. It’s getting harder to fight against them as starvation and dehydration start taking a toll on my body.

I can’t die though – I _have_  to stay strong, no matter what. I’m going to get out of this – I’m going to live to reveal these horrors to the world. Too many have been severely tortured to death without their loved ones knowing. Just this morning I watched a five year old get ripped apart by **_his_** medieval saw machine.

Too much-

Gods it’s all just too much…

Sick bastard. **_He_** won’t get away with this. I’m going to make sure **_he_** _pays_. No matter what I have to do, I’m gonna make sure **_he_** gets a punishment worse than death. First, I need to get out of here.

Somehow. The past two attempts resulted in being captured again. I can’t repeat the same mistakes again.

I wouldn’t. Three was both a very lucky and unlucky number. If I got caught again, it was game over. No one would ever know what went on here or what became of us – the victims.

There _has_  to a way out – there’s _always_  a way out. Using **_his_** paranoia and stupidity against him doesn’t work, **_he’s_** learning from his mistakes. The only other option I have left is to think creatively. I need to find a way to unbind my wrists and feet, pushing past the pain **_he_** inflicted on my back, stomach, and the rest of my body.

Gods I don’t even want to think about it… **_he_** tortures his kidnapped victims for the fun of it, the rewards being screams, pleading, submission, and begging. **_He’s_** even beat and conditioned a few dogs to his will, using them in his final hunting game.

The game I’m going to be thrust into if I don’t find a way out soon.

But of course, before I can try anything, the door creaks open from above, making me growl under my breath. “It’s your turn, _Haddock_ ,” no one other than **_him_** – Alvin the Treacherous - sneers as he walks down the steps painfullyyy slowww. “You know how the hunting game works by now, don’t you~?” Oh dear gods did I know how it worked. “I’m going to give you a chance to get away. Just outside this forest is a busy highway. If you can make it all the way there before I find you, I’ll spare your life.” He smirks – I could _hear_  it in his voice. “But if I find catch you, you die. Got it?”

Honestly the whole scenario seems a little too good to be true. But I know better. Alvin plays dirty. He’s going to throw me out in the snow-filled terrain without a pair of shoes or clothes.

I’m going to be sent out there in just my underwear and rag shirt.

This isn’t fair at all. This is just his way of destroying his victims from the inside out, giving them false hope and taking it from them. It’s the worst way to go - knowing you could have saved yourself but were “too incompetent to do so.” It destroys the mind – the spirit – everything you have left.

How cruel – how very, very cruel. This bastard deserves the same torture he subjected us to.

“It’s not really fair, but I have no choice, do I?” I say, glancing up at the man who’s now hovering over me. A large smirk crosses his face as he kneels down, creepily caressing my cheek.

“I knew you’d get it, you’re smarter than the others.” Slowly he stands again, crossing his arms. “Yes, it’s a fruitless task, but at least you’ll have a chance to save yourself. It’s better than giving up without a fight, yeah~?”

With those words alone, I figured out what he’s after. He wanted to see the look of complete helplessness and despair in his victims’ eyes before taking their life. He wants to see them be completely crushed and void of hope.

“You really are a heartless bastard.”

My words alone make Alvin laugh as he grabs my bound arms, forcing me up. The sudden movement makes me dizzy, and lack of food and water force me to become limb in his arms. “Would you like a final meal~?” he asks, tilting his head. “How about some water before we start the hunt?”

Seriously? Is he seriously trying to pull this bullshit on me right now? Eating and drinking something right before running, after being devoid of it for a week with the exception of a few sips here and there, would make me sick. I’d get cramps, I’d throw up – my body would over work itself to process the nutrients I desperately need.

I wonder how many people fell for this…

It’s too sad to even think about.

“No,” I say, not even bothering to explain myself. He knows what he’s doing, there’s no use in praising him for his wickedness.

Alvin seems to nod in appreciation, excitement sparkling in his eyes as he drags me upstairs. My legs bruise as they bang against the steps like they do every time. Pretty soon I won’t be able to feel those bruises… I won’t be able to feel anything but the cold.

“I’ll give you a good ten minutes, maybe fifteen if I’m feeling generous before going after you.”

Generous – I can’t believe he even said the word. Either way, it’s better than being given five minutes.

Once we were at the front door he cut me free from my ropes, pushing me into the freshly fallen snow. It’s cold – so cold I can’t stop myself from shaking. It has to be about ten degrees out there, maybe even five.

“Oh, I almost forgot, my dogs will be helping me too. Good luck~” he laughs as he slams the door in my face.

Ten minutes – maybe fifteen.

That’s not a lot of time, especially in my condition.

I need to hurry.

Stumbling to my feet, I run. My feet burn in the snow and I gasp, wishing nothing more than to have shoes. This wouldn’t be too bad if my feet were covered by _something_ , but it’s easier to catch me when I can’t run that far.

Bastard…

I don’t let it get to me though. I just have to ignore the cold and keep pushing forward. I’ve endured being burned, branded, water boarded – gods so much more that in comparison, this is a walk in the park.

I just pray my feet will last long enough to get me to the freeway. Frostbite might claim me before then… But I have to have hope. Without hope, I can’t have determination. I’ll have nothing, and I’ll be nothing but another one of Alvin’s victims.

I can do this… I can and I _will_.

I run, I run as fast as I can while looking around for some places to hide. There’s bushes and trees – thickets too. I’ll probably get scratched but worst case scenario, with the cover of night, I can hide in those _just_  long enough for Alvin to pass-

A loud bang from his shotgun sounds off in the distance, followed by loud barking of the dogs.  

Shit… I forgot about the dogs. I can’t hide in those with the dogs on the loose. They’ll find me with ease if I tried hiding. That means I can’t even climb a tree…

Well, this just got more difficult. I don’t even know if I’m close the freeway- highway – whatever it is – I don’t even hear cars yet.

This is problematic… do all sides lead out? Or do some lead to more forest and cliffs? He didn’t specifically say, but knowing this sick bastard, only one side leads to a way out.

And of course I have to be very lucky to choose the right side…

So I run… I run faster and harder than before. The dogs will easily catch up to me, I need to cover as much ground as I can before they get here…


	2. Mafia AU

I’m running –

I’m running as fast as I can, but my bare feet can only carry me so far across this frozen waste land.

I can’t hide – the starved dogs will find me in an instant and who knows what they’ve been trained to do. I’ve seen the way Alvin beats them when they don’t listen – seen the way they tear apart the dead to fill their shriveled empty stomachs.

I can’t risk hiding. The only thing I can do is keep moving forward, even if I’m losing feeling in my nearly naked body.

It hurts… it hurts so much, but I can’t give up, my father is waiting for me – he’s trying so hard to get to me. He’s lost so many men in his desperate attempt to save me from this mad man. I can’t let their efforts and lives all be in vein. Especially Jack’s.

I know he’s out here. I know he’s so close our souls are brushing against each other; we just can’t feel it. That’s how it always is though. Despite being my bodyguard, we get separated a lot because bastards like this stop at nothing to get what they want. Most of the time I’m able to handle them myself, but Alvin’s a very special exception. Unlike the others, his life is dedicated to get his revenge against _me_  - not my father - _me_.

All his past endeavors to capture me have been in vein, and each time we’ve “tangoed,” he’s lost a part of himself – a part he can’t get back. His left leg and right arm, for example. He lost those as I narrowly escaped a collapsing factory, then an explosion he himself set up to kill me.

Yet he blames me for all his loses.

I tried to explain this to him, but each word drove him to the edge as he beat me senseless. This wasn’t my fault! I didn’t even want to be a part of my father’s mafia life! I just wanted to be an engineering student, maybe even an art student. But of course, since I’m my father’s son, other mafia groups target _me_  to get to my father-

**_Snap_ -**

Shit. Shit shit – no crap-!

I chance a glance downwards, seeing a twig there – a twig now snapped in half.

“I hear youuu~” his dark chuckles echo through the trees, making me nearly fall over in fright.

All around me – it sounds like he’s coming from all directions - but that’s impossible! It has to be a trick – some trick to confuse me just long enough for him to catch me!

Yeah – yeah that sounds like a douche move he’d pull.

Gathering my wits, I start running forward again.

It’s so hard to see… the moon and stars are blocked by heavy clouds above that are no doubt ready to burst. That’s just my luck – my horrible, horrible luck. If it starts snowing – if it starts _storming_ , I’m done for. I can hardly handle the cold now, if a storm came, Alvin would find me frozen to death. The only positive thing that came from this was the fact that the storm would slow Alvin down and make it harder for him to find me.  

Maybe a storm was just what I needed.

Shaking these thoughts from my head, I quickly dodge away from a tree, realizing I wasn’t even paying attention to where I was going.

Okay - new tactic. I need to be more careful, especially with the dogs catching up behind me. One slip up and they’ll catch me before I regain my composure. At the same time though, I need to find a stick of some sort in case the dogs do in fact catch up with me. I don’t want to hurt them, but maybe if I can defend myself they’ll back away. After all, Alvin used wooden planks to beat them up. Maybe, just maybe they’ve developed a fear of them.  

The only problem is finding a stick big enough to intimidate them when snow blankets nearly everything in a thick white cocoon-

**_SNAP_**.

Well shit, I literally just broke one I realize with a sigh, looking down at the snow beneath my feet. I just need to search for lengthy sturdy one as I go. Hopefully I haven’t run out of luck. As long as I stay close to the trees, I should be good – as long as I don’t step on one again.

“I can hear you slowing down~” his voice echoes all around me again, making me gasp in absolute horror. Fumbling over my feet, I nearly fall on my butt, unable to determine which direction his voice is coming from. It’s as if he’s coming from all directions, but how is that even possible?

Wait, is that… static under his tone? Did he set up speakers all around the forest in order to taunt and terrify his victims? I’m not the first to be hunted out here like this, he probably marked each route his victims took and set up more speakers in hopes the others would take the same path. Now that I think about it, I swear I saw a lapel mic on the collar of his shirt.

Well shit, that son of a bitch is clever, and obviously rich. I can’t even imagine how much wire and labor it took to do all this.

He really is one crazy son of a bitch-

SMACK!

I gasp and groan, falling on my bottom as I grasp my face in terrible pain. And there I go, running straight into a tree, just like I knew I would.

Goddammit it’s dark. I really need to pay more attention.

The barking is close – so close my hands urgently search around, desperately searching for a stick. Fear and adrenaline beats heavily in my ears. Has my luck finally run out? Will I really die and be unable to stop this hell hole from functioning?

My eyes widen in relief as my fingers wrap around what feels like a stick. Stumbling to my feet, I hold the weapon up, trying to steady myself. The stick is pretty large and thick, reminding me of a pole people would toss flags around with. It isn’t flat like the board Alvin used to beat poor canines with, but it would do. Anything would do.

I really _really_  don’t want to hurt those poor dogs, they’re just as much of a victim as I am. But it’s self-defense. If I don’t do this now, more people are going to be killed because of him…

“I can smell your _fear_.”

Jokes on Alvin, I’m not even that scared, especially now that I figured out his trick and found a weapon. I’m just getting more and more pissed off. Not only am I being forced to run in nothing but my underwear and a ragged dirty brown shirt that hangs off my frame, but I’m learning more and more of how much of a manipulative bastard he is. As much as I hate it, I can imagine others just like me stumbling in pure terror as they desperately try to navigate through the snow, the speakers driving them insane until Alvin finally puts them out of their misery.

I refuse to give into this fear though. Part of me wants to be snarky and reveal that I know his secret, but I know better. With my raised voice both the dogs and the bastard would know where I’m at. That would be suicide.

I wouldn’t be surprised if he set up motion sensor cameras in the trees. Knowing this bastard, he’d never keep his promise. Even if I managed to outrun him and the dogs, he wouldn’t let me go. If the traps didn’t kill me, he probably had a second defense system at the borders of the forest ready to take care of anyone who was winning his game.  

Such bullshit.

“The dogs are nipping at your heels my boy. The game’s coming to an end~”

That wasn’t a lie. The dogs are so close I swear they’re on top of me. Even if I ran, they’d literally be nipping at my heels-

I can see them just over the edge-!

Should I stay here and stand my ground? Or should I try to outrun them?


	3. a. Stay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You chose to stay and stand your ground against the starving dogs.

I need to stand my ground. Running wouldn’t do any good. There was no way I’d ever outrun a pack of starving dogs, not without running straight into a trap.

Taking a deep breath to compose myself, I swing the stick almost expertly around me. I’ve had a lot of training with Jack on how to use different weapons such as swords, staffs, and guns. And it seems to have paid off yet again.

The dogs skid to a stop a few feet from me, growling lowly. I swing the stick even faster, watching as a few take a step back, whimpers of fear replacing the growls.

They’re scared – I can see it in their eyes. They’re scared and _furious_ … a look I hate to see. If I turn my back on them, I know they won’t hesitate to attack. I remind them of their master, the master they hate but can never disobey.

I was being just like Alvin, the very man I hated more than anyone or anything…

I can’t do this – I can’t sink to _his_ level.

Sighing I stop swinging, making the dogs flinch and take another step back. They probably think I’m going to hit them – gods it breaks my heart. Looking at them… I can see myself. As much as I hate to admit it, being a prisoner of his for so long as made me skittish… and afraid.

“I’m sorry…” I whisper, tossing the stick out of reach, slowly holding my hands up. “I can’t do it… I won’t hurt you. I don’t want to become him, even if it means dying, I’ll _never_  stoop to his level.”

Stupid – idiotic – I **_know_**. No that I’m not holding a weapon, their fear will melt. Even though I don’t have much to offer, at least I’ll be a good chew toy for them…

Yet as I wait for them to approach, they don’t. They just stare at me, their heads slightly tilted in confusion. They knew me from Alvin’s home. They saw me get beaten, and they saw me as they got beat. Just as I had, they too realize we’re one in the same. Maybe. Or maybe they realize I have no meat on my bones so the effort isn’t worth it. Either way they don’t attack. Instead, they slowly spread out, disappearing into the woods.

“Thank you,” I whisper before grabbing the stick again. I’d never raise it against them, but I’d sure as hell use it against Alvin and to check for traps. By now I _had_  to be at the edge of the forest, unless somehow I’ve been curving around. With how dark it is though, I wouldn’t be surprised.

“How dare you kill my pets!!” Alvin’s voice bolstered over the speakers. “I’ll **_kill_** you!”

I can’t help but roll my eyes.

Yeah, like he wasn’t going to kill me from the start, but at least it reassured me on one thing – if he had cameras, he wasn’t checking them. He just assumed I killed them now that silence filled the air.

Just as I solve one problem, another shows up. Beautiful yet deadly frozen flakes of snow gently kiss my skin, making me curse under my breath.  

It’s snowing… crap. Of course it would snow now that I don’t have to worry about the dogs. Even with the storm, I doubted Alvin would give up. In fact he might go even _faster_ , determined to find me in time to watch me freeze to death. Sadistic bastard.

I need to find shelter… but even the thought makes me sigh. Alvin wouldn’t leave an area I could take shelter in, he would’ve destroyed them all! Even the ones he left would probably be booby-trapped for sure!

As positive as I want to be, it’s hard with how bleak everything seems to be getting. Without shelter, I’d literally freeze to death in the matter of minutes.

…This was hopeless, wasn’t it?

Taking a deep breath, I once again cleared my mind. I refuse to give up, no matter what it takes, I’ll keep fighting with my last breath.

“Even you won’t survive this storm, Hiccup Haddock the Third.” His voice boomed from all around. “What will it be? Letting yourself get killed by _me_ , so you can have a quick and painless death, or let winter’s cold hands kill you for me- BEEP BEEP BEEP- Shit!” he cursed under his breath before he spoke no more.

That… was definitely something new. Was it a weather alert? No, it couldn’t be, he would’ve used it to instill more fear. Maybe… one of his traps at the border of the forest was triggered? Maybe – maybe Jack and my father were almost here??

It might be wishful thinking, but if there’s hope, I want to hold onto it.

If it is them, I need to find a way to let them know where I am so they don’t walk in the opposite direction. Fire was out of the question. With the storm starting to pick up, a flame wouldn’t cling to such cold and wet wood.

Okay, so what else can I do?

It suddenly hits me. Something so simple yet rare that only one person would understand what I’m doing. Sure Alvin would probably catch on eventually, but Jack – he’ll know it’s me. He’ll find me… I know he will.

Drawing in a deep breath, I let the stick rest against me as I cuff my hands against my mouth, and hoot. I hoot a few times until it sounds natural, then hoot louder and louder… giving intervals to make it seem like I’m an actual owl.

Jack _loves_ owls, especially snowy owls. I’d constantly taunt him on our hikes with owl noises, making him think there was an owl nearby when it’s just me.

Hopefully he’s thinking clearly enough to pay attention… and hopefully this rising cold wind isn’t carrying my voice in the opposite direction.

After a few moments I grab my stick and run, using one hand to make the owl noises, knowing Alvin would catch on soon. Running while making the owl noise will give away my position, but at least I’ll be running in case Alvin finds me first.

Besides, I don’t want Alvin to find me after they do. Yeah they’re trained to kill, but Alvin will sneak up on us… and I don’t want anyone else to die.

The storm continues to grow… I have no idea how long I’ve been running and hooting, but my throat is nearly completely raw and my legs – gods my legs - I can hardly move them anymore. At this point I’m not even running, I’m just… walking - walking so, so slowly…

It hurts…

I’m… tired…

So, so tired…

I’m losing… I know I am. At this point… I’m starting to wonder if the beep over the speakers was my rescue or not. I’m not always right, so I wouldn’t be surprised if I was wrong…

But that only makes me want to collapse even more, knowing no one is coming to my rescue...

I let out another hoot, a faint, yet powerful hoot as a soft thud sounds off, then pain-

I collapse face first, unable to move my hands fast enough to break my fall and gasp, glass shards piercing my skin as an eruption of pain echoes in my left leg, past the numbness.

A trap – shit – I’ve fallen into a trap. Slowly I glance at the rest of me and nearly throw up –

My leg is caught in a bear trap, one that has three levels of spikes instead of one. It would take far too long to get out, yet I tremblingly lift myself off the ground and onto my bottom, gasping and shuttering in pain.

I… I can do it. I can get myself out. I just… need to get myself to sit up and actually examine it.

It takes a while… but I manage. There’s pins keeping it together and I force my numb fingers to reach forward, brushing against the metal.

There’s clinking of metal though, followed by heavy footsteps.

I don’t need to look up. I know who it is.

“You’ll do anything to win, even play dirty,” I whisper faintly.

“It’s called being strategical, not playing dirty,” I heard him smirk above me, moving his gun to aim down at me. I can only sigh, getting one of the rings undone. He doesn’t seem to care. Then again, it’s not like I can run away from him like this.

“I almost made it, didn’t I?” I can’t help but ask, looking around. “There’s glass and traps when there weren’t any in the middle of the forest. I’m near an edge, aren’t I?”

“Pretty perceptive of you,” Alvin admitted. “Too bad you couldn’t figure a way around the traps.”

I could only let out a small laugh. “You knew I wouldn’t survive much longer, not dressed like this. I bet you knew there was going to be a snow storm. I mean, I noticed speakers hidden everywhere, and figured you have cameras too. And considering you knew exactly where I fell, you even have an alarm system.”

The gun clicked above as he turned off the safety. “This is why you’re dying here,” he growled. “You’re too smart, you’ve foiled my plans for the last time, _Haddock_.”

Closing my eyes, my fingers grip a rather large piece of glass.

Patience. I need to be patient, and wait – wait for the right moment-

Shing! BANG!

I threw the glass and toppled on my side _just_  as he pulled the trigger, snow raining down on me. A howl of pain graced my ears before he kicks me _hard_  in the throat. Desperately I gasp for breath, my eye sight slowly coming back to see the barrel right between my eyes, the glass shard stuck in his shoulder.

“GOODBYE HADDOCK!”

Oh gods-

This is it.

This is really it.

No one’s here – no one found me in time –

His finger goes to the trigger-

BANG.

Red… I see red and… darkness…

I’ve always wondered what the afterlife was like… and as light streams from the darkness, I guess I don’t have to wonder anymore.

“HICCUP!!” A familiar voice screams as warm arms wrap around me. I blink in confusion, my ears ringing.

I… can _feel_  those arms wrap around me, and I can _feel_ the pain of my own shoulder bleeding with my left leg while the rest of my body aches.

I’m… alive?

“Thank the gods- I thought I was too late-!!” Jack gasped. “There was so much blood but Alvin was still aiming - I just took the shot!”

OH – Jack had been the one that shot, not Alvin!! And my shoulder – Alvin fell ONTOP of me, making it dark and the glass I threw at him stab into _me_. It makes so much sense!

Coming to my senses I desperately hug Jack back, seeking his warmth – seeking safety I can only find in him. No tears fall, probably because I’ve become numb all over.

“I knew you’d find me,” I whisper faintly, my voice raw.

“Always Sir.” He whispered desperately back as someone rested a blanket or something on me, making me almost cry in relief.

Warmth… Jack… safety. It was as if I was in a dream…

“I… tried calling you-“

“And I came, didn’t I?” He smirked against me. It wasn’t until now that I noticed Jack was crying against me, though he refused to show his face as he just held me tighter. “Of course you’d taunt me with the owls.”

Both of us can’t help but laugh before a cry leaves my lips, feeling someone work on my leg.

“Sorry, Fishlegs, administer the pain reliever. This is going to hurt.”

I feel a needle slide itself into me but I’m so numb it doesn’t even hurt.

“Where’s my father?” I ask tiredly, just now feeling the exhaustion settle over me from all the running and starvation and – just everything.

“He’s at Alvin’s house. He and his party are rescuing those still captured, but I knew I’d find you out here… especially with his last… video…”

The entire time I was captured, Alvin sent my dad’s mafia group video of my torture. I can’t even imagine how that must’ve felt… even now I felt bad but there was nothing I could do to ease the pain besides being alive.

“Wow, using your brain for once? I’m proud of you.” Jack pulls away at that as he rolls eyes, finally making eye contact. He looks like a mess, snot and tears all over his face, but I probably look like crap too.

“I never stopped looking for you…” he whispers, leaning in and capturing my lips in a sweet kiss.

It’s been such a long time since I’ve felt this safe, since I’ve felt his lips on mine. It’s enough to make me sigh, a stray tear racing down my cheeks. “I know… I knew you’d come… because I believe in you.”

That made Jack choke up as he gathered me in his arms, being sure my whole body is covered. “Let’s go home…”

Home… the word seemed foreign yet fulfilling at the same time.

I finally got medical attention, most of my skin salvageable underneath the frostbite. My leg left leg though, the one that got caught in the trap was hardly useable. In the end, they deemed it best to take it off. My other leg wasn’t too bad. I wouldn’t have much feeling in it, but at least it wasn’t dead like the other one was.

The entire time I healed, father, Jack and Toothless never left my side. I felt bad for being a burden on all of them. After all they all had work to be done, but… it was nice…

And when dad had to leave, Jack and I made up for the time we lost…

 


	4. b. Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You chose to run away from the starving dogs.

Try to fight them off - What was I thinking? The fear really must be getting to me! Stopping now would only ensure my death! I need to keep running! It’s my only chance to escape. Turning in the opposite direction than I came from, I ran.

I could hear them – they’re _literally_  on my ass. I can smell their fur – their breath. Tears of fear spring, stinging my eyes-

I can feel their breath against the back of my legs until all of a sudden-

They stop.

I no longer smell them, I no longer hear their bounding footsteps.

Chancing a glance behind me, I see them… retreating? Why are they retreating-

Something small and sharp slices against my left leg, and I feel what seems to be a string give.

A trap – a _wired_ trap.  

Something falls against my back, forcing me to crumble into the snow. A deafening crunch and sounds of blades reverberate throughout the forest, but my mind can’t process it all at once. My body’s in shock – I can’t even feel pain. My eyes are going in and out of darkness, but I can’t let him beat me, not now.

Struggling I try to get up, but realize something.

I can’t feel my legs. In fact, I can’t feel my back. Terror holds me in a tight grip, stopping me from turning around to look.

What fell on me? It doesn’t feel like the weights still there, so surely it rolled off to the side.

Summoning the strength and courage despite my blackening vision, l chance a look back.

Only to go pale as a ghost.

Red – the snow’s tainted red as a large _blade_  sits in the middle of my back. In its reflection I can see blood, bones, guts- The blade literally cut my entire body in half. How I was still conscious and alive now is lost to me as I lose all strength and feel my head collapse back in the snow. As sorrowful as I am, the scream building up in the back of my throat remains there as I harden my heart.

I’m dying, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.

I’m dying, and there’s nothing I can do to help the others.

As hard as it is, I accept it. I gave it my all. No matter what he did to me, I fought with everything I had. Only when other lives were at stake did I falter. My luck was bound to run out at some point.

As the world starts to fade from sight, peace slowly consumes me. I know my father and his men will tear Alvin apart once they learn what’s happened to me. Jack will take great pleasure in torturing the man in every way possible, making sure every breath is a living nightmare.

Yes… as much as I hate violence, my soul finds peace with this new found hope. What makes this even better is that Alvin isn’t able to watch as I take my last breath…

 ---

Hiccup was given his wish, for his father’s men were literally only a few minutes away. When they found the young lord, they grieved, yet were filled with unfathomable rage, especially Jack Frost – his bodyguard. The normally fun-loving yet protective boy was filled with blind fury. He didn’t even take a moment to hold Hiccup’s corpse. Once he learned he was dead, he readied both his pistol and sword, then hunted.

When he found Alvin, he took his sweet precious time, not even bothering to deliver him to the others. When the other men finally caught up, they were all shocked - some even threw up. Jack dismembered the other arm and leg, yet burned the limbs so he wouldn’t die from blood loss. He was in the process of slowly burning the inside of his mouth when Stoick, Hiccup’s father, forced him to stop.

Needless to say, he died a terrible, torturous death, yet Jack still wasn’t satisfied.

He hunted down everyone Alvin ever cared for, even if his affections were slight, and slaughtered them…

He gained followers – dark followers… and formed a new mafia group, half of them being close friends of Hiccup, others shrouded in so much darkness they were called _The Nightmares,_ showing no mercy to anyone.

In the dark corners of the forest, the shadows flickered in delight.

Darkness was spreading… soon everything would end…


End file.
